Cinematographic method and methods for presentation and distribution of cinematographic works

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure describes specific technical approaches to implementing an arrangement in which two or more individual stories share a common feature or “knot” so as to combine to form a larger overall story, and where the individual stories are presented in different orders to different audiences, with the order of presentation affecting the audience perception of the larger overall story.

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.16/705,470, filed Dec. 6, 2019, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/486,793, filed Apr. 13, 2017, which claimspriority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/323,951,filed Apr. 18, 2016. The aforementioned applications are incorporatedherein by reference in their entirety.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to cinematic works, and more particularlyto the presentation and distribution of cinematic works.

BACKGROUND

In the film “Vantage Point” (U.S. Copyright Registration No.PA0001592994), the fictional story of a conspiracy against a fictionalU.S. president is told and re-told from the perspective of a variety ofdifferent characters, with each re-telling revealing different aspectsof the story and gradually exposing more details of the plot and itseventual outcome. While this remains an intriguing approach tostory-telling, the order of the unfolding perspectives will always bethe same for all viewers.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure is directed to implementing an arrangement inwhich two or more individual stories share a common feature or “knot” soas to combine to form a larger overall story, and where the individualstories are presented in different orders to different audiences, withthe order of presentation affecting the audience perception of thelarger overall story. For example, two different movies sharing the samerelease schedule and each telling its own story may have a commonalityor “knot” that combines them into a larger story and may be presented asa “double header” with different audiences seeing the two movies indifferent orders. The present disclosure is directed not to the artisticconcept, but to specific technical approaches to implementing it, aswill be described further below.

In one aspect, the present disclosure is directed to a method forpresenting cinematographic works. The method comprises imposingauthorization limits which limit authorization to present a firstcomplete cinematographic work and a second complete cinematographicwork. The first complete cinematographic work and the second completecinematographic work are unreleased when the authorization limits areimposed. The method further comprises disseminating at least onecommunication containing information linking the first completecinematographic work to the second complete cinematographic work. Inaddition, the method comprises substantially simultaneously removing theauthorization limits so as to authorize presentation of both the firstcomplete cinematographic work and the second complete cinematographicwork, and, after removing the authorization limits so as to authorizepresentation of the first complete cinematographic work and the secondcomplete cinematographic work, causing to be presented, using at leastone cinematographic presentation device, a first synthesiscinematographic work and a second synthesis cinematographic work. Thefirst synthesis cinematographic work comprises the first completecinematographic work followed by the second complete cinematographicwork, and the second synthesis cinematographic work comprises the secondcomplete cinematographic work followed by the first completecinematographic work. The first synthesis cinematographic work ispresented to at least one first individual and the second synthesiscinematographic work is presented to at least one second individualdifferent from the first individual. Using at least one cinematographicpresentation device is essential.

In one embodiment of the method, imposing the authorization limitsfurther comprises limiting authorization to present a third completecinematographic work that is unreleased when the authorization limitsare imposed, and the at least one communication contains furtherinformation linking the third complete cinematographic work to at leastone of the first complete cinematographic work and the second completecinematographic work. In such an embodiment of the method, substantiallysimultaneously removing the authorization limits comprises substantiallysimultaneously authorizing presentation of the first completecinematographic work, the second complete cinematographic work and thethird complete cinematographic work, and the method further comprises,after authorizing presentation of the first complete cinematographicwork, the second complete cinematographic work and the third completecinematographic work, presenting, using at least one cinematographicpresentation device, a third synthesis cinematographic work. The thirdsynthesis cinematographic work comprises one of the first completecinematographic work followed by the third complete cinematographicwork, the second complete cinematographic work followed by the thirdcomplete cinematographic work, the third complete cinematographic workfollowed by the first complete cinematographic work and the thirdcomplete cinematographic work followed by the second completecinematographic work. In this embodiment, the third synthesiscinematographic work is presented to at least one third individualdifferent from the first individual and the second individual.

In another aspect, the present disclosure is directed to a method fortheatrical presentation of cinematographic works. The method comprisesorganizing a plurality of patrons into a first group of patrons and asecond group of patrons. The method uses at least one cinematograph topresent, to the first group of patrons, a first synthesiscinematographic work, and using the at least one cinematograph topresent, to the second group of patrons, a second synthesiscinematographic work. The first synthesis cinematographic work comprisesa first complete cinematographic work followed by a second completecinematographic work, and, the second synthesis cinematographic workcomprises the second complete cinematographic work followed by the firstcomplete cinematographic work. The use of the at least one cinematographis essential.

In some embodiments of the method, presentation of the first synthesiscinematographic work temporally overlaps presentation of the secondcomplete cinematographic work.

In some embodiments of the method, the first synthesis cinematographicwork is presented in a first movie theater in a movie theater multiplexand the second synthesis cinematographic work is presented in a secondmovie theater in the movie theater multiplex.

In other embodiments, the first synthesis cinematographic work and thesecond synthesis cinematographic work are presented in a single movietheater. In such embodiments, the method may further comprise, beforepresenting the second complete cinematographic work, presenting thefirst complete cinematographic work while the first group of patrons isin the single movie theater and the second group of patrons is absentfrom the single movie theater, presenting the second completecinematographic work while both the first group of patrons and thesecond group of patrons are in the single movie theater, and, afterpresenting the second complete cinematographic work, presenting thefirst complete cinematographic work again while the second group ofpatrons is in the single movie theater and the first group of patrons isabsent from the single movie theater. In such embodiments, a singlepresentation of the second complete cinematographic work is common topresentation of the first synthesis cinematographic work andpresentation of the second synthesis cinematographic work.

Organizing the plurality of patrons into the first group of patrons andthe second group of patrons may be carried out, for example, by randomselection, by algorithmic selection or by individual patrons selectingone of the first synthesis cinematographic work and the second synthesiscinematographic work.

In a further aspect, the present disclosure is directed to a method fortransmitting cinematographic works to remote cinematographicpresentation devices. The method comprises organizing a plurality ofremote cinematographic presentation devices into a first group of remotecinematographic presentation devices and a second group of remotecinematographic presentation devices and transmitting, to the pluralityof remote cinematographic presentation devices, a first completecinematographic work and a second complete cinematographic work. Themethod further comprises causing the first group of remotecinematographic presentation devices to present a first synthesiscinematographic work and causing the second group of remotecinematographic presentation devices to present a second synthesiscinematographic work. The first synthesis cinematographic work comprisesthe first complete cinematographic work followed by the second completecinematographic work, and the second synthesis cinematographic workcomprises the second complete cinematographic work followed by the firstcomplete cinematographic work.

The remote cinematographic presentation devices may comprise, forexample, televisions and/or computers.

In some embodiments, organizing the plurality of remote cinematographicpresentation devices into the first group of remote cinematographicpresentation devices and the second group of remote cinematographicpresentation devices is carried out by a transmission system thattransmits the first complete cinematographic work and the secondcomplete cinematographic work. In other embodiments, organizing theplurality of remote cinematographic presentation devices into the firstgroup of remote cinematographic presentation devices and the secondgroup of remote cinematographic presentation devices is carried out bythe plurality of remote cinematographic presentation devices.

The transmitting may comprise at least one of Internet streaming,television broadcasting and cable transmission. The transmitting mayalso or alternatively comprise transmitting storable media data forstorage on the plurality of remote cinematographic presentation devicesand later playback thereon.

In a still further aspect, a method for transmitting cinematographicworks to remote cinematographic presentation devices comprisestransmitting, from a distribution system to a plurality of remotedigital cinematographic presentation devices, digital copies of aplurality of complete cinematographic works. The completecinematographic works are conjoinable according to at least two uniquepermutations to form at least two unique synthesis cinematographicworks.

In preferred embodiments, a first one of the remote cinematographicpresentation devices presents a first one of the unique synthesiscinematographic works and a second one of the remote cinematographicpresentation devices presents a second one of the unique synthesiscinematographic works. The first one of the remote cinematographicpresentation devices is different from the second one of the remotecinematographic presentation devices and the first synthesiscinematographic work is different from the second synthesiscinematographic work.

The permutations may be specified locally on the remote digitalcinematographic presentation devices.

The digital copies of the complete cinematographic works may betransmitted by at least one of Internet streaming and transmittingstorable media data for storage on the plurality of remotecinematographic presentation devices and later playback thereon.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features of the invention will become more apparent fromthe following description in which reference is made to the appendeddrawings wherein:

FIG. 1A schematically illustrates a method for presentingcinematographic works according to an aspect of the present disclosure;

FIG. 1B schematically illustrates a method for presentingcinematographic works according to an aspect of the present disclosure;

FIG. 1C schematically illustrates a method for presentingcinematographic works according to an aspect of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2A shows, in schematic form, implementation of an exemplary methodfor theatrical presentation of cinematographic works using a singlemovie theater;

FIG. 2B shows, in schematic form, implementation of an exemplary methodfor theatrical presentation of cinematographic works using a singlemovie theater;

FIG. 2C shows, in schematic form, implementation of an exemplary methodfor theatrical presentation of cinematographic works using a singlemovie theater;

FIG. 2D shows, in schematic form, implementation of an exemplary methodfor theatrical presentation of cinematographic works using a singlemovie theater;

FIG. 2E shows, in schematic form, implementation of an exemplary methodfor theatrical presentation of cinematographic works using a singlemovie theater;

FIG. 3 shows, in schematic form, implementation of an exemplary methodfor theatrical presentation of cinematographic works in a multiplextheater environment;

FIG. 4 schematically illustrates a first exemplary method fortransmitting cinematographic works to remote cinematographicpresentation devices; and

FIG. 5 schematically illustrates a second exemplary method fortransmitting cinematographic works to remote cinematographicpresentation devices.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The term “cinematographic work”, as used herein, refers to the recordedform of a motion picture, either with or without sound, and the term“motion picture” is used in its broadest sense to include, withoutlimitation, live action, traditional animation, stop motion animation,computer animation, motion comics, and any combination thereof. Therecorded form may be any form capable of reliable reproduction,including traditional film and digital media of any kind.

A “complete cinematographic work”, as that term is used herein, refersto a cinematographic work which tells a self-contained story or partthereof (i.e. a cinematographic work that ends with “to be continued”may still be a complete cinematographic work). For example, each of“Back to the Future” (U.S. Copyright Registration No. PA0000266708),“Back to the Future, Part II” (U.S. Copyright Registration No.PA0000451911) and “Back to the Future, Part III” (U.S. CopyrightRegistration No. PA0000473604) would individually be considered acomplete cinematographic work.

The term “synthesis cinematographic work” refers to the unified wholethat results from placing at least two complete non-sequelcinematographic works back-to-back (although there may be anintermission between presentation of the individual completecinematographic works) where the complete non-sequel cinematographicworks share a common feature or “knot” so as to combine to form a largeroverall story. The combination of “Back to the Future”, “Back to theFuture, Part II” and “Back to the Future, Part III” (or of either “Backto the Future” and “Back to the Future, Part II” or “Back to the Future,Part II” and “Back to the Future, Part III”) would not be considered tobe a synthesis cinematographic work because “Back to the Future”, “Backto the Future, Part II” and “Back to the Future, Part III”, althoughcombining to tell a larger overall story, share a sequel relationshipwith one another. Because of the sequel relationship, these films are tobe presented in their predefined order. Thus, the term “synthesiscinematographic work” excludes the back-to-back arrangement of two ormore sequels.

In accordance with the present disclosure, two or more completecinematographic works can be used to form at least two differentsynthesis cinematographic works by presenting the completecinematographic works in different back-to-back arrangements. Each ofthe back-to-back arrangements tells a larger overall story than any ofthe individual complete cinematographic works. The different ordering ofthe complete cinematographic works results in viewers of the differentsynthesis cinematographic works having different perspectives of thelarger overall story even though all viewers will have seen the sameindividual complete cinematographic works. The term “back-to-back” isnot intended to exclude pauses between or during individual completecinematographic works, and likewise, advertisements or other fillerelements may be inserted within or between the individual completecinematographic works that form a synthesis cinematographic work.

For example, each of the complete cinematographic works might show oneside of a conflict against the other (family versus family, gang versusgang, business versus business, and/or any combination across any ofthese), with the perspective of which side is “right” depending on theorder in which complete cinematographic works are presented as part ofthe synthesis cinematographic work.

Alternatively, two seemingly unrelated complete cinematographic worksmay share a commonality. One example of a commonality is a commonoccurrence/event (a fire, a shooting, a fight, an explosion, a sharedinteraction of seeming insignificance such as a passing of twocharacters in a mall, park or other common area). Another example of acommonality is shared supporting characters across the two completecinematographic works (i.e. assistants, a musical component, firedepartment/police department, gang, protagonists/heroes, restaurantstaff, etc.). A further example of a commonality is a common object(i.e. a weapon with uniquely identifying features, a tattoo, a souvenir,photo, stuffed animal with repaired stitching, unique quilt, etc.) thatmay be shared between complete cinematographic works.

As another alternative, one complete cinematographic work could show anexperience and its impact on the characters while the other completecinematographic work shows how forces outside the characters' knowledgeare impacting the outcomes (i.e. ghosts, angels/demons, universalenergy, God-like intervention).

Still a further alternative would be to have one completecinematographic work show an experience and storyline in the thirdperson, with one or more other complete cinematographic works recountingthe same experience in the first person (possibly across multiplecharacters with three or more complete cinematographic works).

The complete cinematographic work may, but need not, share a commontimeline.

Importantly, while each complete cinematographic work tells a completestory and can be enjoyed independently, where the two (or more) completecinematographic works are viewed as part of a synthesis cinematic work,the viewer's perception of the characters/events involved will beimpacted by which complete cinematographic work is seen first (i.e. acharacter may be positioned as the villain in one completecinematographic work, but as a hero in the other completecinematographic work). Thus, when used within the terms “first completecinematographic work” and “second complete cinematographic work”, thewords “first” and “second” do not imply an order of presentation withina synthesis cinematic work but merely distinguish between two differentcomplete cinematographic works. For example, a synthesis cinematic workmay comprise a second complete cinematic work followed by a firstcomplete cinematographic work.

Certain non-limiting examples will now be provided to illustrate sets ofcomplete cinematographic works that can be combined into differentsynthesis cinematographic works.

In one example, a first complete cinematographic work and a secondcomplete cinematographic work relate two different storylines about theAmerican Revolution. One complete cinematographic work tells a storyfrom the British perspective, in which those loyal to the Crown cannotunderstand why anyone would want to be independent from the BritishEmpire, while the second tells a story from the traditional Americaperspective. As a self-contained story, in the first completecinematographic work the characters vary in their stance and stature andin their reasons for being involved—those who are staunchly loyal to theCrown, those who got involved to feed their greed and those who wereleft with no choice as their only means of employment or to feed theirfamilies and keep their homes on both sides of the conflict. Some didthe job solely to protect their families at home in England—protectingthem from the ridicule of their neighbors, being ostracized or eventaken into custody as traitors. Similarly, the second completecinematographic work outlines the American story—the quest forindependence and the impact of the British on the lives of the colonistsin general. The drama shows the back-and-forth between those that stillwanted a relationship with the Crown and those that wanted radicalchange, as well as the business benefits to some of those driving themovement for independence. While there is a commonality in that bothcomplete cinematographic works depict an aspect of the same historicalevent, the primary commonality or “knot” between the two stories is alove story between a British soldier and a colonist loyal to the patriotcause of independence. Viewers watching the first completecinematographic work before the second will tend to be sympathetic tothe Crown, and view the independence movement as ungrateful for themilitary protection and commercial opportunities provided by membershipin the British Empire. Viewers watching the second completecinematographic work before the first will tend to take the Americanside, viewing the Crown as arbitrarily suppressing the basic rights ofthe colonists as Englishmen.

In another example, two complete cinematographic works outline anongoing conflict between the local police and the mob as to who willcontrol the streets. One complete cinematographic work outlines thestruggles of the police force to gain control of the streets. Loyalty tobrother and sister officers is prime, and there is a strong sense offamily and camaraderie. The officers are portrayed as honest andself-sacrificing public servants trying to protect the public from abrutal criminal organization, a theme which drives the viewer to want toproudly belong to their organization. The other complete cinematographicwork outlines the struggles of the mob to keep some semblance of controlon the streets in the face of an onslaught from a police force pursuingits own agenda. The mobsters are portrayed as good guys in their ownright, trying to suppress more violent gangs and working to ensure thattheir own are safe and well kept, including random acts of kindness,getting kids the education they need (for example, the money needed fora bright neighborhood kid to attend college mysteriously appears,provided anonymously by the mobsters). Loyalty to fellow members of theorganization is prime, and there is a strong sense of family andbelonging, a theme which drives the viewer to want to proudly belong totheir organization. In both films, loyalty and respect is earned andreturned. The commonality or “knot” is common characters across bothcomplete cinematographic works. The two complete cinematographic worksshow the same characters living by the same set of rules, but on bothsides of the law, driving the question of true right versus wrong,justice versus survival. Legal guns versus illegal guns. Legal cashversus illegal cash. The exact same emotions run through charactersperceived as distinct opposites. Viewers watching the first completecinematographic work before the second will tend to side with the policeand view the mobsters as a ruthless criminal organization to bedestroyed. Viewers watching the second complete cinematographic workbefore the first will tend to be sympathetic to the mobsters, and viewthe police as corrupt in the sense of pursuing their own interestsrather than protecting the public.

In a further example, a first complete cinematographic work presents afictionalized or semi-fictionalized account of the experiences of thosewho died in the World Trade Center on the morning of Sep. 11, 2001 andthe subsequent experiences of their families and friends, and a secondcomplete cinematographic work presents a fictionalized orsemi-fictionalized account of the experiences of individuals who, butfor the fickle hand of fate (a missed train, a sick child, a firing, allof which seemed terrible at the time) would have been in the twin towerswhen they were hit. The commonalities or “knots” are the impacts of thefirst and second airplanes and the emergency response. Viewers watchingthe first complete cinematographic work before the second will tend tocome away with an appreciation for how apparent calamities may beblessings in disguise. Viewers watching the second completecinematographic work before the first will tend to feel the unfairnessof life, asking “why couldn't the others have missed work that day?” Theknots are the first and second plane hits and the response teams.

In yet another example, first and second complete cinematographic worksdeal with the issue of addiction from the perspective of the addict andfrom the perspectives of those close to the addict, respectively. Thefirst complete cinematographic work depicts the addict's perspective andoutlines the emotional turmoil of being addicted and the perceivedcause(s) of that addiction. The characters surrounding the addict havediffering opinions of what drove the addict to it and whether the addictis an innocent victim or is to blame for their actions. The storyoutlines the personal loss of everything as the addict hits rock bottom.The second complete cinematographic work outlines the emotional turmoilof supporting an addict and being driven to the terrible choice ofsupporting them while trying to prevent them from hitting rock bottom orhaving to push them away to experience rock bottom all alone. Thecommonality or “knot” may be the simple gift of a bottle of cognac atChristmas—a welcome gesture in one complete cinematographic work is rawtorture in the other complete cinematographic work. Viewers watching thefirst complete cinematographic work before the second will tend to havesympathy for the addict and view those around the addict as unfeeling orunsympathetic. Viewers watching the second complete cinematographic workbefore the first will tend to have sympathy for those around the addictand view the addict as selfish and self-centered.

Yet a further example provides first and second complete cinematographicworks relating to the decision whether or not to pursue a dream. In thefirst complete cinematographic work the protagonist decides to pursuethe dream, and in the second complete cinematographic work theprotagonist decides not to pursue the dream. The first and secondcomplete cinematographic works are constructed so that viewers watchingthe first complete cinematographic work before the second will perceivethis first synthesis cinematographic work as a story in which theprotagonist fantasizes about pursuing the dream but ultimately decidesnot to, whereas viewers watching the second complete cinematographicwork before the first will perceive this second synthesiscinematographic work as a story in which the protagonist contemplateswhat life would be like if s/he doesn't pursue the dream and thendecides to pursue it. The commonality or “knot” is the “fork in theroad”—the path taken or not taken.

A still further example could be first and second completecinematographic works based on mythology, such as Greek mythology. Afirst complete cinematographic work could treat the gods as protagonistsand deal with how they are impacted by the actions of humans, and asecond complete cinematographic work could treat the humans asprotagonists and deal with how they are impacted by the actions of thegods. Depending on the order in which the first and second completecinematographic works are viewed (i.e. whether the first synthesiscinematographic work or the second synthesis cinematographic work isviewed), a viewer may perceive either the gods or the humans ascallously indifferent to the others.

An additional example provides first and second complete cinematographicworks in which an outsider has infiltrated women's homes and is keepinga close eye on their activities. In the first complete cinematographicwork, the plot explores the anguish and horror of the characters whoperceive that they are being stalked, but are denied the support oflocal law enforcement authorities in protecting them because of theirindividual histories (e.g. prostitution, drug use, class distinctions,etc.). The second complete cinematographic work omits the anguish andhorror, and portrays the characters as being under the protection of theoutsider, who is keeping them safe from others in their environmentslike violent husbands and abusive neighbors. Those viewing the firstcomplete cinematographic work before the second (i.e. those viewing thefirst synthesis cinematographic work) will tend to perceive the outsideras an evil stalker, and be unmoved by the protective actions shown inthe second complete cinematographic work. In contrast, those viewing thesecond complete cinematographic work before the first (i.e. thoseviewing the second synthesis cinematographic work) will tend to perceivethe outsider as a selfless protector, and react to the anguish andhorror shown in the first complete cinematographic work as obliviousingratitude by those under the outsider's protection.

Reference is now made to FIGS. 1A to 1C, which schematically illustratea method for presenting cinematographic works. As shown in FIG. 1A, themethod comprises imposing authorization limits 102 which limitauthorization to present a first complete cinematographic work 104 and asecond complete cinematographic work 106. The authorization limits 102may include legal (e.g. contractual) restrictions as well astechnological access restrictions. As shown by the dashed boxes 108, thefirst complete cinematographic work 104 and the second completecinematographic work 106 are unreleased when the authorization limits102 are imposed. The term “unreleased”, as used in this context, meansthat the first complete cinematographic work 104 and the second completecinematographic work 106 have not been made generally available to thepublic (e.g. by presentation in theaters, distribution via cable orover-the-air television or via the Internet) although they may have beenviewed by a small number of individuals having a duty of confidentiality(e.g. studio employees, movie critics, theater managers, etc.).

As shown in FIG. 1B, while the authorization limits 102 remain in placeand the first complete cinematographic work 104 and the second completecinematographic work 106 remain unreleased (dashed boxes 108), at leastone communication 110 is disseminated. The communication 110 containsinformation 112 linking the first complete cinematographic work 104 tothe second complete cinematographic work 106. The information 112 could,for example, indicate that the first complete cinematographic work 104and the second complete cinematographic work 106 contain related storiesas described above, and may include one or more trailers. Thecommunication(s) 110 may include audio communication(s) such as radio orpodcast advertisement(s), video communication(s) such as television orInternet video commercials, posters, billboards (dynamic or static),e-mails (with or without links and/or embedded content), SMS, iMessageor similar messages, public events as well as other types ofcommunication.

Referring now to FIG. 1C, after disseminating at least one of thecommunication(s) 110, the authorization limits 102 are substantiallysimultaneously removed, as shown by arrows 113, so as to authorizepresentation of both the first complete cinematographic work 104 and thesecond complete cinematographic work 106. Further communications 110 maycontinue to be disseminated after the authorization limits 102 areremoved. In addition, after removing the authorization limits 102, themethod causes a first synthesis cinematographic work 114 and a secondsynthesis cinematographic work 116 to be presented using at least onecinematographic presentation device 118. The term “cinematographicpresentation device” is used herein to refer to any device that canpresent a motion picture (with or without sound although preferably withsound). As such, a “cinematographic presentation device” includes, butis not limited to, a theater projector/sound system (conventional filmor digital), a television (alone or in combination with one or more of aDVD/Blu-Ray player, a set-top box, a DVR, cable tuner, computer,Internet streaming device such as Apple TV, Roku and other similardevices), a laptop computer, a desktop computer and monitor, a tabletcomputer, and a smartphone. The use of the cinematographic presentationdevice(s) is essential to the method.

Continuing to refer to FIG. 1C, the first synthesis cinematographic work114 comprises the first complete cinematographic work 104 followed bythe second complete cinematographic work 106, and the second synthesiscinematographic work 116 comprises the second complete cinematographicwork 106 followed by the first complete cinematographic work 104. Inthis context, the term “followed by” encompasses a scenario where thefirst complete cinematographic work 104 and the second completecinematographic work 106 share one or more common scenes that are shownonly once and are not repeated in the presentation of the synthesiscinematographic works 114, 116 despite appearing in both completecinematographic works 104, 106. In some embodiments, however, scenesthat are common to both the first complete cinematographic work 104 andthe second complete cinematographic work 106 may be shown more thanonce. The first synthesis cinematographic work 114 is presented to atleast one first individual 120 and the second synthesis cinematographicwork 116 is presented to at least one second individual 122 who isdifferent from the first individual. Thus, typically, different groupsof individuals 120, 122 would see each of the first synthesiscinematographic work 114 and the second synthesis cinematographic work116 and form different impressions. In particular, even though thedifferent groups of individuals 120, 122 will have cumulatively seen thesame content (i.e. the first complete cinematographic work 104 and thesecond complete cinematographic work 106), they will have seen thiscontent in a different order so as to influence the way it is perceived.

The above-described method can be extended beyond a first completecinematographic work and a second cinematographic work to apply to threeor more complete cinematographic works. For example, imposing theauthorization limit may further comprise limiting authorization topresent a third complete cinematographic work which is unreleased whenthe authorization limits are imposed, and the communication(s) maycontain further information linking the third complete cinematographicwork to at least one of the first complete cinematographic work and thesecond complete cinematographic work. In such an embodiment, all of theauthorization limits would be substantially simultaneously removed so asto authorize presentation of the first complete cinematographic work,the second complete cinematographic work and the third completecinematographic work. After authorizing presentation of the firstcomplete cinematographic work, the second complete cinematographic workand the third complete cinematographic work, at least onecinematographic presentation device would be used to present, inaddition to the first synthesis cinematographic work and the secondsynthesis cinematographic work, a third synthesis cinematographic work.The third synthesis cinematographic work may be the first completecinematographic work followed by the third complete cinematographicwork, the second complete cinematographic work followed by the thirdcomplete cinematographic work, the third complete cinematographic workfollowed by the first complete cinematographic work or the thirdcomplete cinematographic work followed by the second completecinematographic work. The third synthesis cinematographic work would bepresented to at least one third individual who is different from thefirst individual and the second individual.

Presentation of a first synthesis cinematographic work and a secondsynthesis cinematographic work may be implemented in a commercial movietheater environment where one or more groups of patrons view a commonscreen. In an embodiment which is implemented in a movie theaterenvironment, the cinematographic presentation device(s) 118 will be oneor more cinematographs. The term “cinematograph”, as used herein, refersto a projection device that can present a motion picture (with orwithout sound although preferably with sound) onto a screen in front ofan audience, from behind the screen or from in front of the screen aboveand/or behind the audience, and includes traditional film projectors anddigital projectors. In theatrical presentation, the use of acinematograph is essential. A method for theatrical presentation ofcinematographic works may be implemented in a movie theater multiplex(i.e. a complex having a plurality if individual theaters) or using onlya single theater.

Reference is first made to FIGS. 2A to 2E, which show, in schematicform, implementation of an exemplary method for theatrical presentationof cinematographic works in which both the first synthesiscinematographic work 114 and the second synthesis cinematographic work116 are presented in a single movie theater 224. A plurality of patronsis organized into a first group of patrons 120 and a second group ofpatrons 122 that is different from the first group of patrons 120. Asshown in FIG. 2A, before presenting the second complete cinematographicwork 106, a single cinematograph 118 is used to present the firstcomplete cinematographic work 104 while the first group of patrons 120is in the single movie theater 224 and the second group of patrons 122is absent from the single movie theater 224. As shown in FIG. 2B, afterpresentation of the first complete cinematographic work 104, the secondgroup of patrons 122 enters the single movie theater 224, as shown byarrow 226, while the first group of patrons 120 remains therein. Thismay occur, for example, during an intermission, and it is understoodthat even if some members of the first group of patrons 120 leave thesingle movie theater 224 and then return, for example to use therestroom or to purchase popcorn or other comestibles, it is stillconsidered that the first group of patrons 120 remains in the singlemovie theater 224. Next, as shown in FIG. 2C, the cinematograph 118 isused to present the second complete cinematographic work 106 while boththe first group of patrons 120 and the second group of patrons 122 arein the single movie theater 224. As shown in FIG. 2D, after presentingthe second complete cinematographic work 106, the first group of patrons120 departs the single movie theater 224, as shown by arrow 228, whilethe second group of patrons 122 remains in the single movie theater 224.Again, it is understood that even if some members of the second group ofpatrons 122 leave the single movie theater 224 and then return, it isstill considered that the second group of patrons 122 remains in thesingle movie theater 224. As shown in FIG. 2E, after the first group ofpatrons 120 departs, the cinematograph 118 is used to present the firstcomplete cinematographic work 104 again while the second group ofpatrons 122 is in the single movie theater 224 and the first group ofpatrons 120 is absent from the single movie theater 224. Thus, the firstgroup of patrons 120 viewed the first synthesis cinematographic work114, which comprises the first complete cinematographic work 104followed by the second complete cinematographic work 106, and the secondgroup of patrons 122 viewed the second synthesis cinematographic work116, which comprises the second complete cinematographic work 106followed by the first complete cinematographic work 104. As illustratedschematically in FIG. 2C, in this embodiment the single presentation ofthe second complete cinematographic work 106 is common to presentationof the first synthesis cinematographic work 114 and presentation of thesecond synthesis cinematographic work 116.

Reference is now made to FIG. 3, which shows, in schematic form,implementation of an exemplary method for theatrical presentation ofcinematographic works in a movie theater multiplex. A plurality ofpatrons is organized into a first group of patrons 120 and a secondgroup of patrons 122 that is different from the first group of patrons120. A first cinematograph 118A is used to present the first synthesiscinematographic work 114 to the first group of patrons 120 in a firstmovie theater 330 in a movie theater multiplex 332, and a secondcinematograph 118B is used to present the second synthesiscinematographic work 116 to the second group of patrons 122 in a secondmovie theater 334 in the movie theater multiplex 332. As describedabove, the first synthesis cinematographic work 114 comprises a firstcomplete cinematographic work 104 followed by a second completecinematographic work 106, and the second synthesis cinematographic work116 comprises the second complete cinematographic work 106 followed bythe first complete cinematographic work 104. Typically, presentation ofthe first synthesis cinematographic work 114 temporally overlapspresentation of the second synthesis cinematographic work 116; i.e. theywill be presented at approximately the same time, although they may beof different durations and one may start earlier than the other and/orone may end later than the other.

In both the single theater method shown in FIGS. 2A to 2E and the movietheater multiplex method shown in FIG. 3, any suitable method may beused to organize the plurality of patrons into the first group ofpatrons 120 and the second group of patrons 122, and the organizationmay be carried out by using a computer system or manually by staff ofthe movie theater(s) or by the patrons themselves. For example,organizing the plurality of patrons into the first group of patrons 120and the second group of patrons 122 may be carried out by randomselection, by algorithmic selection, or by individual patrons selectingone of the first synthesis cinematographic work and the second synthesiscinematographic work. It is noted that where the cinematograph(s) aredigital cinematograph(s), the methods shown in FIGS. 2A to 2E and inFIG. 3 will necessarily involve a transformation of data from digitalform to visual or audiovisual form.

Presentation of a first synthesis cinematographic work and a secondsynthesis cinematographic work may also be implemented in a digitallydistributed environment. In this regard, FIG. 4 schematicallyillustrates a first exemplary method for transmitting cinematographicworks in digital form to remote cinematographic presentation devices. Asnoted above, a “cinematographic presentation device” includes atelevision (alone or in combination with one or more of a DVD/Blu-Rayplayer, a set-top box, a DVR, cable tuner and other similar devices), alaptop computer, a desktop computer and monitor, a tablet computer, anda smartphone.

As shown in FIG. 4, there are a plurality of remote cinematographicpresentation devices, including laptop computers 440A, 442A, smartphones440B, 442B, tablets 440C, 442C and televisions 440D, 442D. The genericterm “computer”, as used herein, encompasses desktop computers, laptopcomputers, smartphones, tablet computers and other computing devicescapable of being used to present a cinematographic work. Thecinematographic presentation devices 440A, 442A, 440B, 442B, 440C, 442C,440D, 442D are “remote” in the sense that they are physically distantfrom one another, and may be in different homes, different cities oreven different countries, and are also physically distant from atransmission system 438. In some embodiments, some or all of thecinematographic presentation devices 440A, 442A, 440B, 442B, 440C, 442C,440D, 442D may be communicatively coupled to the transmission system 438or a portion thereof via a network (e.g. the Internet). The transmissionsystem 438 may comprise one or more of an over-the-air televisionbroadcasting system, a cable broadcasting system and/or one or moreserver computers, which may be co-located or physically distant butcommunicatively coupled so as to cooperate with one another.

The cinematographic presentation devices 440A, 442A, 440B, 442B, 440C,442C, 440D, 442D are organized into a first group 440 of remotecinematographic presentation devices 440A, 440B, 440C, 440D and a secondgroup 442 of remote cinematographic presentation devices 442A, 442B,442C, 442D. The organization of the cinematographic presentation devices440A, 442A, 440B, 442B, 440C, 442C, 440D, 442D into groups 440, 442 maybe carried out via logic executed by the transmission system 438 or vialogic executed by the plurality of remote cinematographic presentationdevices 440A, 442A, 440B, 442B, 440C, 442C, 440D, 442D, eitherindividually or cooperatively.

The transmission system 438 transmits the first complete cinematographicwork 104 and the second complete cinematographic work 106 to theplurality of remote cinematographic presentation devices 440A, 442A,440B, 442B, 440C, 442C, 440D, 442D. The transmissions to the pluralityof remote cinematographic presentation devices 440A, 442A, 440B, 442B,440C, 442C, 440D, 442D may include one or more of Internet streaming,television broadcasting and cable transmission. This approach would besuitable for an embodiment which contemplates “real-time” viewing. Thetransmissions to the plurality of remote cinematographic presentationdevices 440A, 442A, 440B, 442B, 440C, 442C, 440D, 442D may also (oralternatively) take the form of storable media data for storage on theplurality of remote cinematographic presentation devices 440A, 442A,440B, 442B, 440C, 442C, 440D, 442D and later playback thereon. Thetransmissions to the plurality of remote cinematographic presentationdevices 440A, 442A, 440B, 442B, 440C, 442C, 440D, 442D may besubstantially simultaneous or may occur at different times for each ofthe remote cinematographic presentation devices 440A, 442A, 440B, 442B,440C, 442C, 440D, 442D.

According to the method, the first group 440 of remote cinematographicpresentation devices 440A, 440B, 440C, 440D is caused to present a firstsynthesis cinematographic work 114, and the second group 442 of remotecinematographic presentation devices 442A, 442B, 442C, 442D is caused topresent a second synthesis cinematographic work 116. The first synthesiscinematographic work 114 comprises the first complete cinematographicwork 104 followed by the second complete cinematographic work 106, andthe second synthesis cinematographic work 116 comprises the secondcomplete cinematographic work 106 followed by the first completecinematographic work 104. Presentation of the first synthesiscinematographic work 114 may be caused by transmitting the firstsynthesis cinematographic work 114 as a monolithic file or data stream,or by transmitting the first complete cinematographic work 104 and thesecond complete cinematographic work 106 as two or more distinct filesor data streams and also transmitting instructions 446 for the order ofpresentation. Likewise, presentation of the second synthesiscinematographic work 116 may be caused by transmitting the secondsynthesis cinematographic work 116 as a monolithic file or data stream,or by transmitting the first complete cinematographic work 104 and thesecond complete cinematographic work 106 as two or more distinct filesor data streams and also transmitting instructions 448 for the order ofpresentation.

Because the remote cinematographic presentation devices 440A, 442A,440B, 442B, 440C, 442C, 440D, 442D are digital, the methods shown inFIG. 4 will necessarily involve a transformation of data from digitalform to visual or audiovisual form. Accordingly, the term “digitalcinematographic presentation device” refers to a cinematographicpresentation device (as previously defined) in which data is transformedfrom digital form to visual or audiovisual form, and includes a digitaltelevision (alone or in combination with one or more of a DVD/Blu-Rayplayer, a digital set-top box, a DVR and other similar devices), alaptop computer, a desktop computer and monitor, a tablet computer, anda smartphone, or other network-enabled digital media device.

As indicated above, the methods described herein can be extended beyonda first complete cinematographic work and a second cinematographic workto apply to three or more complete cinematographic works. With only twocomplete cinematographic works, there are only two possible uniquepermutations: in a first permutation the first complete cinematographicwork is followed by the second cinematographic work, and in the secondpermutation the second complete cinematographic work is followed by thefirst cinematographic work. With three complete cinematographic works,the number of unique permutations expands to six. Increasing the numberof complete cinematographic works will increase the number of uniquepermutations, as shown in the table below:

Number of Complete Cinematographic Number of Unique Viewing WorksPermutations  2  2  3  6  4  24  5 120  6 720  7 5, 040  8 40, 320  9362, 880 10 3, 628, 800 11 39, 916, 800 12 479, 001, 600 13 6, 227, 020,800 14 87, 178, 291, 200 15 1, 307, 674, 368, 000 16 20, 922, 789, 888,000 17 355, 687, 428, 096, 000 18 6, 402, 373, 705, 728, 000 19 121,645, 100, 408, 832, 000 20 2, 432, 902, 008, 176, 640, 000

Reference is now made to FIG. 5, which shows a second method fortransmitting cinematographic works to remote cinematographicpresentation devices. As can be seen in FIG. 5, there are a plurality ofremote digital cinematographic presentation devices, including laptopcomputers 540A, smartphones 540B, tablets 540C and digital televisions540D, 542D which are “remote” in the sense that they are physicallydistant from one another, and may be in different homes, differentcities or even different countries, and are also physically distant froma distribution system 538. The distribution system 538 may comprise oneor more server computers, which may be located in the same facility ormay be dispersed across two or more facilities and communicativelycoupled so as to cooperate with one another. The remote digitalcinematographic presentation devices 540A, 540B, 540C, 540D, 542D are atleast intermittently communicatively coupled to the distribution system538 or a portion thereof via a network (e.g. the Internet).

The distribution system 538 transmits digital copies of a plurality 550of complete cinematographic works to the remote digital cinematographicpresentation devices 540A, 540B, 540C, 540D, 542D. In the exemplaryembodiment shown in FIG. 5, the plurality 550 of completecinematographic works consists of four complete cinematographic works;there is a first complete cinematographic work 504, a second completecinematographic work 505, a third complete cinematographic work 506 anda fourth complete cinematographic work 507. In other embodiments, theremay be more or fewer complete cinematographic works. The words “first”,“second”, “third” and “fourth” do not imply an order of presentationwithin a synthesis cinematic work but merely distinguish betweendifferent complete cinematographic works. The digital copies of thecomplete cinematographic works 504, 505, 506, 507 may be transmitted byInternet streaming, by transmitting storable media data for storage onthe plurality of remote cinematographic presentation devices and laterplayback thereon, or by some combination thereof.

The complete cinematographic works 504, 505, 506, 507 are conjoinableaccording to at least two unique permutations to form at least twounique synthesis cinematographic works. In the exemplary embodimentshown in FIG. 5, there are four complete cinematographic works which areconjoinable according to twenty-four unique permutations to formtwenty-four unique synthesis cinematographic works. This is merely oneillustrative example, and it is contemplated that there may beembodiments in which the complete cinematographic works are conjoinableaccording to a number of unique permutations that is less than thetheoretical maximum number of unique permutations, i.e. there may besome unique permutations (viewing orders) that are prohibited, or only asubset of the total number of complete cinematographic works may beviewed. Preferably, there are at least three complete cinematographicworks conjoinable according to at least six unique permutations to format least six unique synthesis cinematographic works. More preferably,there are at least four complete cinematographic works conjoinableaccording to at least twenty-four unique permutations to form at leasttwenty-four unique synthesis cinematographic works. Still morepreferably, there are at least five complete cinematographic worksconjoinable according to at least one-hundred-twenty (120) uniquepermutations to form at least one-hundred-twenty (120) unique synthesiscinematographic works. Yet even more preferably, there are at least tencomplete cinematographic works conjoinable according to at least threemillion, six-hundred-twenty-eight thousand, eight hundred (3,628,800)unique permutations to form at least three million,six-hundred-twenty-eight thousand, eight hundred (3,628,800) uniquesynthesis cinematographic works. Still yet even more preferably, thereare at least fifteen complete cinematographic works conjoinableaccording to at least one trillion, three-hundred-seven billion,six-hundred-seventy-four million, three-hundred-sixty-eight thousand(1,307,674,368,000) unique permutations to form at least one trillion,three-hundred-seven billion, six-hundred-seventy-four million,three-hundred-sixty-eight thousand (1,307,674,368,000) unique synthesiscinematographic works.

The remote digital cinematographic presentation devices 540A, 540B,540C, 540D, 542D present at least two different unique permutations ofthe complete cinematographic works 504, 505, 506, 507 to form at leasttwo unique synthesis cinematographic works. This is illustrated in FIG.5. A first one of the remote cinematographic presentation devices,namely a first digital television 540D, automatically presents aconjunction of the complete cinematographic works 504, 505, 506, 507according to a first unique permutation so as to present a first uniquesynthesis cinematographic work 514. Similarly, a second one of theremote cinematographic presentation devices, namely a second digitaltelevision 542D, automatically presents a conjunction of the completecinematographic works 504, 505, 506, 507 according to a second uniquepermutation so as to present a second unique synthesis cinematographicwork 516. The first synthesis cinematographic work 514 consists of thefirst complete cinematographic work 504 followed by the second completecinematographic work 505 followed by the third complete cinematographicwork 506 followed by the fourth complete cinematographic work 507, andis different from the second synthesis cinematographic work 516, whichconsists of the fourth complete cinematographic work 507 followed by thethird complete cinematographic work 506 followed by the second completecinematographic work 505 followed by the first complete cinematographicwork 504. The first remote cinematographic presentation device, namelythe first digital television 540D, is different from the second remotecinematographic presentation device, namely the second digitaltelevision 542D.

The permutations according to which the complete cinematographic works504, 505, 506, 507 are conjoined may be specified locally on the remotedigital cinematographic presentation devices 540A, 540B, 540C, 540D,542D, for example randomly or according to a user preference, or may bespecified by the distribution system 538.

The methods for presenting, transmitting and distributingcinematographic works as described herein represent significantly morethan merely using categories to organize, store and transmit informationand organizing information through mathematical correlations. Themethods are in fact an improvement to technology for presenting,transmitting and distributing cinematographic works, as the methodsprovide for assembly of two or more distinct synthesis cinematographicworks using a common set of complete cinematographic works ascomponents. Thus, while some specific illustrative examples of synthesiscinematographic works have been provided so as to illustrate how themethod and technology may be applied to enable creative expression, themethods and technology described herein are not directed to the creativeand expressive elements of any particular cinematographic works, butrather to presentation and distribution technology which enables thatcreativity and expression. Moreover, the methods are applied in respectof particular machines, namely cinematographic presentation devices. Assuch, the methods described herein are confined to cinematographicpresentation devices, in some cases confined in particular tocinematographs, and to the specific and limited field of presenting,transmitting and distributing cinematographic works.

Aspects of the present technology may be embodied within a system, amethod, a computer program product or any combination thereof. Thecomputer program product may include a computer readable storage mediumor media having computer readable program instructions thereon forcausing a processor to carry out aspects of the present technology. Thecomputer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that canretain and store instructions for use by an instruction executiondevice. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but isnot limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device,an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, asemiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing.

A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of the computer readablestorage medium includes the following: a portable computer diskette, ahard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), anerasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), a staticrandom access memory (SRAM), a portable compact disc read-only memory(CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD), a memory stick, a floppy disk,a mechanically encoded device such as punch-cards or raised structuresin a groove having instructions recorded thereon, and any suitablecombination of the foregoing. A computer readable storage medium, asused herein, is not to be construed as being transitory signals per se,such as radio waves or other freely propagating electromagnetic waves,electromagnetic waves propagating through a waveguide or othertransmission media (e.g., light pulses passing through a fiber-opticcable), or electrical signals transmitted through a wire.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can bedownloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computerreadable storage medium or to an external computer or external storagedevice via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, awide area network and/or a wireless network. The network may comprisecopper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wirelesstransmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/oredge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in eachcomputing/processing device receives computer readable programinstructions from the network and forwards the computer readable programinstructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium withinthe respective computing/processing device.

Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations ofthe present technology may be assembler instructions,instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions,machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions,state-setting data, or either source code or object code written in anycombination of one or more programming languages, including an objectoriented programming language or a conventional procedural programminglanguage. The computer readable program instructions may executeentirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as astand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partlyon a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer or server. Inthe latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user'scomputer through any type of network, including a local area network(LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to anexternal computer (for example, through the Internet using an InternetService Provider). In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including,for example, programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gatearrays (FPGA), or programmable logic arrays (PLA) may execute thecomputer readable program instructions by utilizing state information ofthe computer readable program instructions to personalize the electroniccircuitry, in order to implement aspects of the present technology.

Aspects of the present technology have been described above withreference to schematic diagrams showing methods, apparatus (systems) andcomputer program products according to various embodiments. In thisregard, the schematic diagrams in the Figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present technology. For instance, some elements inthe schematic diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portion ofinstructions, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). It will also be notedthat aspects of the methods described and illustrated herein can beimplemented by special purpose hardware-based systems that perform thespecified functions or acts, or combinations of special purpose hardwareand computer instructions.

It also will be understood that aspects of the methods described hereincan be implemented by computer program instructions. These computerprogram instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purposecomputer, special purpose computer, or other programmable dataprocessing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions,which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmabledata processing apparatus, create means for implementing thefunctions/acts described and illustrated herein.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computerreadable medium that can direct a computer, other programmable dataprocessing apparatus, or other devices to function in a particularmanner, such that the instructions stored in the computer readablemedium produce an article of manufacture including instructions whichimplement the function/act described and illustrated herein. Thecomputer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer, otherprogrammable data processing apparatus, or other devices to cause aseries of operational steps to be performed on the computer, otherprogrammable apparatus or other devices to produce a computerimplemented process such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer or other programmable apparatus provide processes forimplementing the functions/acts described and illustrated herein.

Several currently preferred embodiments have been described by way ofexample. It will be apparent to persons skilled in the art that a numberof variations and modifications can be made without departing from thescope of the invention as defined in the claims.

1-17. (canceled)
 18. A method for presentation of non-sequelcinematographic works as unified wholes, the method comprising: causingat least a first cinematographic presentation device to present a firstsynthesis cinematographic work, wherein the first synthesiscinematographic work comprises a first unified whole of a set ofcomplete non-sequel cinematographic works corresponding to digital mediaincluding a first complete cinematographic work and a second completecinematographic work presented in a first order, wherein the firstcomplete cinematographic work includes a first motion picture thatpresents a first self-contained story and the second completecinematographic work includes a second motion picture that presents asecond self-contained story different from the first self-containedstory, and wherein each of the set of complete non-sequelcinematographic works has a feature of content in common such that thefirst unified whole is configured to present a larger overall storyincluding the feature as a cinematographic knot connecting the firstself-contained story and the second self-contained story; and causing atleast a second cinematographic presentation device to present a secondsynthesis cinematographic work, wherein the second synthesiscinematographic work comprises a second unified whole of the set ofcomplete non-sequel cinematographic works including the first completecinematographic work and the second complete cinematographic workpresented in a second order different from the first order, wherein thesecond unified whole is configured to present the larger overall storywith the cinematographic knot connecting the first self-contained storyand the second self-contained story.
 19. The method of claim 18, whereinpresentation of the first synthesis cinematographic work temporallyoverlaps presentation of the second complete cinematographic work. 20.The method of claim 18, wherein the first cinematographic presentationdevice and the second cinematographic presentation device each includesone or more of a theater projector/sound system, a television, a mediaplayer, a set-top box, a DVR, a cable tuner, a computer, an Internetstreaming device, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a tabletcomputer, or a smartphone.
 21. The method of claim 18, wherein the firstcinematographic presentation device and the second cinematographicpresentation device are randomly selected for presenting the firstsynthesis cinematographic work and the second synthesis cinematographicwork, respectively.
 22. The method of claim 18, wherein the firstcinematographic presentation device and the second cinematographicpresentation device are algorithmically selected for presenting thefirst synthesis cinematographic work and the second synthesiscinematographic work, respectively.
 23. The method of claim 18, whereinthe first cinematographic presentation device is caused to present thefirst synthesis cinematographic work based on first user input and thesecond cinematographic presentation device is caused to present thesecond synthesis cinematographic work based on second user input.
 24. Acomputer-readable storage medium, excluding transitory signals andstoring instructions, which, when executed by at least one dataprocessor of a system, cause the system to: transmit, to a plurality ofremote cinematographic presentation devices, digital copies of a set ofnon-sequel cinematographic works including a first completecinematographic work and a second complete cinematographic work, whereinthe first complete cinematographic work includes a first motion picturethat presents a first self-contained story and the second completecinematographic work includes a second motion picture that presents asecond self-contained story different from the first self-containedstory; cause a first group of the plurality of remote cinematographicpresentation devices to present a first synthesis cinematographic workas a first unified whole having a first perspective of a larger overallstory with a cinematographic knot connecting the first self-containedstory and the second self-contained story based on a feature of commoncontent, wherein the first synthesis cinematographic work comprises thefirst complete cinematographic work and the second completecinematographic work in a first order; and cause a second group of theplurality of remote cinematographic presentation devices to present asecond synthesis cinematographic work as a second unified whole having asecond perspective of the larger overall story with the cinematographicknot connecting the first self-contained story and the secondself-contained story based on the feature of common content, wherein thesecond synthesis cinematographic work comprises the second completecinematographic work and the first complete cinematographic work in asecond order different from the first order, and wherein the firstsynthesis cinematographic work and the second synthesis cinematographicwork each comprise the set of complete cinematographic works but presentthe larger overall story from different perspectives.
 25. Thecomputer-readable storage medium of claim 24, wherein the plurality ofremote cinematographic presentation devices comprises televisions. 26.The computer-readable storage medium of claim 24, wherein the pluralityof remote cinematographic presentation devices comprises a laptop orsmartphone.
 27. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 24,wherein the first group of remote cinematographic presentation devicesand the second group of remote cinematographic presentation devices areselected by a transmission system that transmits the first completecinematographic work and the second complete cinematographic work. 28.The computer-readable storage medium of claim 24, wherein the firstgroup of remote cinematographic presentation devices and the secondgroup of remote cinematographic presentation devices are selected byusers at the plurality of remote cinematographic presentation devices.29. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 24, wherein thetransmitting comprises at least one of Internet streaming, televisionbroadcasting, or cable transmission.
 30. The computer-readable storagemedium of claim 24, wherein the transmitting comprises transmittingstorable media data for storage on the plurality of remotecinematographic presentation devices and later playback thereon.
 31. Asystem comprising: at least one hardware processor; and at least onenon-transitory memory coupled to the at least one hardware processor andstoring instructions, which, when executed by the at least one hardwareprocessor, cause the system to: transmit, over a computer network to aplurality of remote cinematographic presentation devices, data includingdigital copies of a set of complete cinematographic works that arenon-sequel, wherein each complete cinematographic work corresponds to adata file or data stream including a motion picture that presents aself-contained story, cause the plurality of remote cinematographicpresentation devices to present the digital copies of the set ofcomplete cinematographic works according to at least two differentpermutations to form at least two different synthesis cinematographicworks each configured for presentation as a unified whole that eachinclude the digital copies of the set of complete cinematographic works,wherein the set of complete cinematographic works have a feature ofcontent in common such that two unified whole present differentperspectives of a larger overall story with the feature as acinematographic knot that connects the self-contained stories.
 32. Thesystem of claim 31: wherein a first one of the remote cinematographicpresentation devices is caused to present a first one of the at leasttwo different synthesis cinematographic works, and wherein a second oneof the remote cinematographic presentation devices that is differentfrom the first one of the remote cinematographic presentation devices iscaused to present a second one of the at least two different synthesiscinematographic works different from the first one of the at least twodifferent synthesis cinematographic works.
 33. The system of claim 32,wherein the permutations are determined locally at the plurality ofremote cinematographic presentation devices.
 34. The system of claim 32,wherein the digital copies of the set of complete cinematographic worksare transmitted by at least one of Internet streaming and transmittingstorable media data for storage on the plurality of remotecinematographic presentation devices and later playback thereon.
 35. Thesystem of claim 31, wherein the digital copies of the set of completecinematographic works are obtained by a distribution system andtransmitted by the distribution system to the plurality of remotecinematographic presentation devices.
 36. The system of claim 35,wherein the at least two different permutations are determined at thedistribution system before transmitting the digital copies of the set ofcomplete cinematographic works from the distribution system to theplurality of remote cinematographic presentation devices.
 37. The systemof claim 35, wherein the at least two different synthesiscinematographic works are synthesized locally on the plurality of remotecinematographic presentation devices in accordance with instructions fordifferent orders of presentation.
 38. The system of claim 35: whereinthe digital copy of each of the set of complete cinematographic works istransmitted by the distribution system to the plurality of remotecinematographic presentation devices, wherein each of the set ofcomplete cinematographic works is presentable individually, and whereinthe at least two different synthesis cinematographic works arepresentable with at least one intermission.